Even with the power of the temporal ring my mind couldn’t outrace the panic that seized me. The feeling of the sudden pounding of my heart was a second where I didn’t focus on the pieces moving around in my head. My hand went to my side, grazing my pistol which was sat comfortably in its holster; the Feather-Light Circlet had a loose fit around my head, but it wouldn’t be falling off any time soon; holstered at my left was the electric blade, not something I liked using, but a tool at my disposal; and finally there was Rollo’s summoning band.

I’ve fought powerful people before, I thought, pushing against a tide of doubt which spoke in Odysseus’ voice. It was louder than it had been in a very long time, the insidious whisper that made me doubt my own prowess. I can fight this battle. I’m not a coward.

But I still felt on unsteady footing, the mantra of my victories not sticking against the great cacophony of self-doubt.

“Explain yourself, Champion,” Surefoot said, a hint of doubt in his words, but an alertness visible in his eyes; pink light suffused the Urocy, catching his fur and suspending it as if he were in water. An action that signalled action from those above; slats opened in the ceiling and eight armour-adorned Urocy fell out, landing silently around a Mellowwind who looked frozen in fear.

My companions prepared for battle: Hatim who wore a mishmash of armour jumped in place and rolled his shoulders, clenching and unclenching his fists, which made the knuckleduster-like bands of metal clasped behind his palm extend and retract shiny, black claws; Surya’s grasp tightened around his spear as his wings opened and closed, his gaze went to the ceiling and he frowned in dissatisfaction; and Matthaeus’ expression switched from a deep sadness to a matching resignation as he lifted his hammer and settled it over one shoulder.

Clyde’s expression fell as his eyes grew bigger, shining as if they were close to tears. It was clear by sight alone that he had expected that something like this would happen and some part of him had primed himself on what the most important thing to do was. Swallowing, the man darted forward, something that made the Urocy tense, prepared to attack if he neared the ends of the table with Surefoot or Mellowwind. Clyde didn’t pay them any mind, he snatched the contract, rolled it and tucked it into his pants; then he looked up, his gaze passing over the Matthaeus, Surya, Hatim and finally me.

What he did next surprised me. The others were much greater warriors than I could ever be, visible through the calm they bore even with the teeth of the bear-trap closed against our legs. Yet Clyde stepped closer to me, his body language of one who expected protection.

I froze, feeling at once happy but my terror doubling. It was hard to read how much I was only tolerated in the settlement, but this meant Clyde at least realised that I was truly looking out for them. But also…

If he dies it will be your fault. My doubts disappeared, lost against the much harsher visions of Clyde’s wife and daughter’s stricken expression took their place — the tears and anguish they would feel taking my heart and squeezing it so hard it became hard to breathe.

Would I be able to return to the settlement if the worst happened? If I was right and they did trust me with their well-being, would such feelings last after I’d sent their chief into the slaughter?

My hand closed around my pistol and I pulled it out of its holster. I was still shaky and nervous and terrified, but having someone to protect settled the worst of the nerves. If my focus slipped, then Clyde might get hurt and I wasn’t about to let that fucking happen.

For the first time my brain began to work, taking in the pieces and trying to pinpoint all the dimensions we’d need to be on the lookout for if we wanted to escape.

Surefoot had asked a question, I reminded myself, hoping that I hadn’t drifted too long.

“I have a spatial stone,” I said, “and I’ve been keeping track of how everyone’s been moving. There’s twelve people in the spatial hub.”

My mind touched on them. They hadn’t grown in number. There were twelve people in the direction of the spatial obelisk of the Urocy, none of whom were moving. The full limits of spatial magic were still unknown to me, but I knew a mage having access to a spatial obelisk was very bad for us.

What had Luther told me about transportation of people? It depended heavily on having a sense of where your target was, and the sensory aspect of spatial magic had been integrated into the process. My heart froze in place as I imagined their mage simple teleporting us elsewhere like they had the king when I’d first been summoned.

“Is my brother dead?” Mellowwind asked, her voice pulling out of what felt like a frantic focus.

I refocused: there were four groups in the compound — ours, Odysseus and the ladies-in-waiting, the people in the spatial hub, and finally Allyceus and his knights. Keeping my focus in their direction, I switched the filters of my spatial sense so I could only detect the Urocy — there had been three of them, two guards and Lowgrowl.

“They’re still alive,” I said.

Allyceus’ group hadn’t stopped after the betrayal, which painted a picture: everything must have been planned from the beginning, which meant Allyceus had likely been stalling while writing up the contract, giving the others time to get a sense of the defences of the Urocy.

But there were a few things that still didn’t make sense, like how the trap hadn’t been sprung sooner.

“Then Lowgrowl would have ensured that the spatial hub could not be compromised,” Mellowwind said, her voice doing its best to build towards confidence but the effect faltering around the edges. She was scared and it was visible, standing starkly against the calm of her guard and her brothers. “You cannot forget, brother, the Champion has been known to lie before. This could all be a ruse.”

My head snapped in her direction, then in Surefoot’s, and I was surprised to see that the doubt in his eyes was more pronounced. Mellowwind’s voice was overrun with fear, but as she spoke her ridiculous words they seemed to gain a new confidence.

“A ruse to get what?” Hatim said, his tone overrun with a tempered frustration. I was surprised he even had that much in him given his distaste for the nobility. “We already have what we want. Leaving would be the easiest thing for us to do. We gain nothing from everyone thinking some sort of trap exists.”

“The logic is sound,” Mellowwind said, her confidence faltering and her head moving this way and that. We were caught in a trap and yet things felt too normal, there was no fighting, no cacophony of battle, only a mental anguish as everyone had to trust only my word that something was wrong. “But then…why would Althor’s king do this?”

“For now, that is irrelevant,” Surefoot said, the words heavy and his face scrunched in thought. “Captain Sprybound,” a tall, jet-black fox with long ears perked up, “send one of your men to investigate the claim. Champion, the guards above Prince Odysseus, are they still there?”

“They’re fine, I think,” I said, playing around with my spatial sense to get an image. “I haven’t detected any movement that might have been a skirmish. They’re still.”

“It would be in your best interests to catch Odysseus and Allyceus’ friends,” said Matthaeus, the words struggling to leave his mouth. “No doubt the mage in Father’s employ will be trying to extract them.”

“That could be the reason for the deceit,” Mellowwind chimed in, a sudden hope in her words. “If we move against the royal family and the cause is baseless, our relationship with the Althorean king would be damaged. The tales of Rowan’s taking of Washerton prove that this is how he claims victory, he disrupts old alliances, turns father against son—” with this she spared Matthaeus a long look, “— this could be more of the same.”

Fucking hell, I thought, but I bit my tongue, keeping myself from saying something stupid. Surefoot had left disappointed because I’d lied. This was the consequence of that, wasn’t it? Now he had a harder time trusting that I was being upfront.

Fuck.

“Champion,” said Surefoot, a lot of meaning in the words. I turned to him, meeting his eyes. “We spoke, you and I, and I had the sense you understood the precarious position in which my people exist.”

“I remember,” I said. The Urocy dens had been given duchies to rule, but what good was that when so much of their number had been lost in a war against humanity? They had a lot of reason to fear being tricked into conflict, when that could be their complete end.

“Then tell me that this is not some ploy you and Rowan hatched,” he said, his voice grave and his gaze piercing.

“It really isn’t.”

Surefoot nodded. “Captain, belay the scout,” he said. “Send a deep tremor with notes of betrayal and the order to apprehend.”

“This could be folly, brother,” said Mellowwind. “This amount of trust. It will be known by the greater den and it will be judged.”

Surefoot hesitated for a second, then, “I have walked amongst humanity. More than memory, I have experienced them. I think this is the correct course of action.”

“And if you are mistaken?” she asked.

“Then so be it,” he said. “Go ahead, Captain.”

“At once,” Captain Sprybound said before barking — a sound my mind couldn’t decipher. Two of the foxes in her company leapt off the table and landed on the ground; they were small and light figures, but a low thrum reverberated through the compound as they met the ground.

At once there was activity in the distance, the foxes moved and Allyceus’ ladies-in-waiting responded as if they had been waiting for the assault. The motions were jumbled, impressions against my mind zipping this way and that, sometimes changing in elevation other times rocketing back.

Allyceus’ group had felt the vibration and they started running, their pace quickened by various forms of magic. In the room itself, something happened and everyone’s elevation changed — dropping.

“They’ve all just dropped,” I said as one of the Urocy on the ground said, “The pitfall has opened.”

“You truly are a spatial mage,” said Mellowwind. “Then…all of this is true? Does humanity truly act against us?”

“Not humanity,” said Matthaeus, “but my father. My words may offer you no relief, but…I think some part of Father must have hesitated to take this action. Else why would he have taken so long? I think my brother, Odysseus, might be the cause. He must have told Father that Rowan and I might have an alliance.”

“You are right, Matthaeus Mandaron,” Mellowwind said, her voice chilly. “Your words offer no relief. No matter the intention or hesitation, this is the course that has been chosen and it will have consequences.”

A deep rumble ran through the building, almost taking me off my feet.

“A tremor ringing with loss, Guardsman Surefoot,” said Captain Sprybound. “Our men are losing.”

I felt as Allyceus and his knights arrived and jumped down, then it was over in seconds. The adversaries were too varied and their artefacts too powerful.

“They’ve lost.”

“Are any dead?” Surefoot asked.

It took a second to change things around, remembering the number of the Urocy that had been alive at the beginning of the battle and how many there were now. There was an incongruity, five sparks that were no longer impressions against my mind.

I nodded.

“We leave,” said Surefoot.

“What of Lowgrowl?” Mellowwind asked.

“Control your emotions, sister,” Surefoot snapped. “You hold the truth. You know that it is the way of the Great Guardsman to make decisions that others cannot. I say we leave.”

“They may still be able to call us,” said Matthaeus. “That they have not done so already is confounding.”

“Protections on our network,” said Surefoot. “The spatial hub is connected to a greater network that confounds one’s spatial sense, and the interface itself was built for the Urocy mind. It is one of the ways that we protect the dens. Your mage is likely still attempting to decipher the peculiarities of our obelisk. We had best be on our way.”

“No,” said Matthaeus.

“No?” I said and I felt vindicated in not being the only who wore their surprise readily.

“How far are my siblings to the spatial stone, Champion?” he said, his body primed to move. I automatically checked — they were closer to us than the spatial hub, with the fighting down, the group had climbed out of their drop and were now moving quickly towards their allies.

But what did that matter?

“Surely you are not thinking of attacking them,” Surya said.

“My brothers are correct,” said Matthaeus. “I made them promises which I then reneged on. I can give them what they want most if I am given the opportunity. If I were to only take them out of the castle for a time, they would see how bad things are.”

“How would they see any of that if you take them hostage?” Hatim asked, his expression sympathetic. “If you did that, they would resent you.”

“They’re their own people,” I said. “They made their choice and you have to live with it.”

“Even when it means that they might die?” Matthaeus said, his anguish unmasked. “They are angry, and that is why they do not see reason.”

“It’s not that, friend,” said Hatim. “Reason is a personal thing. Here and now, yours does not match theirs. In their eyes, it’s you who hasn’t seen reason.”

Matthaeus’ strong façade fell and it looked, for the first time, as if he could feel the weight of his hammer upon his shoulder.

“Sometimes the best thing you can do for people is be there when they change their minds,” Hatim said, his eyes filling with melancholy. “I have been there before, though I was Allyceus and Odysseus instead of you. I have been angry at my brother and too wrapped up in my own pride to take in his wiser words. Any time that my mind has changed it has because he had given room to calm before coming to me again. There might be another opportunity for you to get on better terms with them. Don’t do something that will get you killed before that day arrives.”

Looking at Matthaeus, I couldn’t be sure if he was convinced.

“We should really be going,” I said, more to Surefoot than Matthaeus. The Urocy nodded and passed word to his people. Two more foxes joined those on the ground and in sync they stamped their front paws; the properties of the stone floors, becoming almost liquid and rippling, meeting in the middle to form a spout that shot, receding once more and opening a circular hole.

“I shall drop first,” said Surefoot, striding forward. “Below I will prepare an area of altered gravity so you can land lightly.” Without waiting for another word he jumped and dropped much faster as he altered the gravitational pull around him.

The Urocy guards ushered Mellowwind down the table and closer to the lip of the hole. She still seemed terrified, but had settled into silence instead of trying to logic her way out of trouble.

“Clyde,” I said, nodding towards the drop.

“What about you?” he asked.

“I’ll be right there,” I told him, my attention going to Matthaeus’ who still wore an expression I didn’t like. Hatim and Surya must have mirrored my own because the Falconer subtly moved so that he was between Matthaeus and the door.

Mellowwind along with four Urocy jumped in, leaving the four who’d built the hole.

“You may go, human,” one said. Clyde nodded and then leapt in, disappearing into the low-lit hole.

“Matthaeus,” said Surya, his voice gentle. “There is truth in Hatim’s words. More than most I understand your plight, friend, but it should not cloud you to reason. There is little chance you can succeed if you venture to them — by sheer numbers alone you would lose.”

“Humans,” said the fox, their voice short. “Make your decision or you shall be left here and the way will be closed.”

“Matthaeus,” I said, desperation leaking into my voice. We’d been lucky so far to have things go well for us. We hadn’t had to fight, but the longer we dithered, the greater the possibility of the worst happening. A part of me wished I could be as compassionate to Matthaeus as Hatim or Surya, but that would mean extending my sympathies to Odysseus and Allyceus, and right now I didn’t have the mental capacity. “I understand that you’re going through a lot, but…I have to protect Clyde.”

It felt like doing what Luther had done — just leaving, but I was already taking steps towards the hole when I stopped, my heart nearly jumping out of my throat.

The doorway slid open to reveal men already in motion. Five of them were in burnished armour carrying spears and circular shields and one wearing grass-green armour with a lime green cape; the three in front dropped, levelling their spears while bringing up their shields; standing, the two spear men behind the same.

An anguish bellow left Matthaeus as he went on the attack, his hammer leaving his shoulder to hit the ground. The man in green flicked his hand and a large circular shield appeared already flying, angled low; Matthaeus’ hammer was intercepted before it could hit the ground. Instead of the earth shifting under the hammer’s power, a loud metallic clang rang through the confined space.

“Scatter!” Hatim shouted, already in motion. He leapt to the side; Surya did the same but he went up; and after increasing gravity’s hold, I leapt to the side much like Hatim.

Matthaeus, who had committed to attacking, was not so lucky. Thick beams of water formed, missing us but slamming into Matthaeus; the man tried to use his hammer to keep himself from being flung back, but the shield thrower flicked an up arm, pushing on the hammer and throwing Matthaeus’ balance off. He fell and the ground shook as his hammer landed heavily.

Surya flapped his wings once more and shot back instead of up, he levelled his spear, raking through the air and three thumps left it, large golden spearheads shooting out with force. The royal guard lifted their shields and a burst of wind shot out, extending their protections; it wasn’t enough, and the spearheads passed through only to be stopped by the burnished armour.

Focus, I thought, getting to my feet and leaping back as the shield rose into the air and began to spin at speed, a whirlwind starting to form around it to give it an invisible cutting edge. I landed on the far side of the table, not that it offered much cover, but it was enough; my gun pointed and the fire bloomed bright, disrupting the effect around the shield.

To the left, Hatim dashed to the side, his boots skidding against the stone floor as he dodged a thin beam of water in his direction. He was a nimble dodger, weaving under and over the blast, but he was a close-combat fighter and it would be too dangerous to close the distance.

A spray of water surrounded us as people tried to hit Surya from above. He was doing his best as he dodged, but that he couldn’t get altitude was working against him. The Falconer wasn’t as drenched as Matthaeus who was still on the ground — kept there by a constant assault — but he was studded with moisture.

The Urocy made a sound and moved as one, making the floor ripple in a wave that rushed towards the royal guard; with coordination that could only come through training, the royal guard stood and stepped back, getting out of the way as rock leapt up and solidified into a wall. The Lime Knight’s shield rippled and disappeared with a sigh a moment later.

“Now, humans,” the Urocy from before said. I didn’t hesitate, I closed the distance and jumped into the darkness, trusting the bright pink light that filled the bottom of the tunnel.

Above I felt as the others moved, first Hatim and then Surya. Matthaeus didn’t move and for a moment I thought he would chase after his siblings, instead something else happened. The Urocy could manipulate the earth in delicate yet powerful ways, they had built a wall and I hadn’t once felt the vibrations of earth magic; with Matthaeus though, it was loud.

A harsh rumble filled the air, moving through the walls and shaking them heartily, cracks formed at my left and right, racing down far faster than I could fall, sometimes opening wide and making the earth shift as it tried to close the gaps. As I listened, I could hear the direction the earthquake moved, first in the direction of the men who had attacked us — and some of their impressions winked out, a sign that they were dead — and the other raced towards the spatial hub.

Before the earthquake could run its course, I felt as Matthaeus and the four Urocy jumped down the hole after us.

I landed at the bottom of thinner and shorter tunnels, bare unlike those above, the only illumination coming from the pink of Surefoot’s gravitational magic. Clyde let out a breath of relief as he saw me and I gave him a nod, looking up in time to see Hatim land lightly.

“You stayed longer than I expected,” said Surefoot.

“They figured out how to teleport people close to us,” I said.

“Then the situation is dire,” said Surefoot. “We need to move and we should do so quickly, before they send more in their number.”

Surya and Matthaeus arrived at the same time, both wet, though the latter of the two drenched, something that hadn’t lightened his mood.

“Was that you?” Hatim asked.

Matthaeus nodded. “Keeping my sibling from reaching the hub,” he said, “and hopefully ending the threat of Sir Lilliton. He was one of the knights who trained me and he is an expert enough fighter that he might best me.”

“Then we should not dither,” said Surefoot. “Captain. Create barriers behind us. The smartest manoeuvre they can make is closing us in. Ensure that they have trouble. It will be quite a run to the Pathways of Egress, but when we have reached them, we should be beyond the sensory range of the spatial stone.

“Now let us be off,” he said and collectively we broke into brisk jogs.